1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a personal navigation device, and more particularly, to a method of assisting a user of a personal navigation device with finding a parking area nearby a destination location and navigating from the parking area to the destination location.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Global Positioning System (GPS) based navigation devices are well known and are widely employed as in-car navigation devices. Common functions of a navigation device include providing a map database for generating navigation instructions that are then shown on a display of the navigation device. These navigation devices are often mounted on or in the dashboard of a vehicle using a suction mount or other mounting means.
The term “navigation device” refers to a device that enables a user to navigate to a pre-defined destination. The device may have an internal system for receiving location data, such as a GPS receiver, or may merely be connectable to a receiver that can receive location data. The device may compute a route itself, or communicate with a remote server that computes the route and provides navigation information to the device, or a hybrid device in which the device itself and a remote server both play a role in the route computation process. Personal GPS navigation devices are not permanently integrated into a vehicle but instead are devices that can readily be mounted in or otherwise used inside a vehicle. Generally (but not necessarily), they are fully self-contained—i.e. include an internal GPS antenna, navigation software and maps and can hence plot and display a route to be taken.
In a conventional personal navigation device, a user will input a destination location that he wishes to travel to, such as a concert hall at the center of town. Although the personal navigation device can provide the user with driving instructions on how to get to the concert hall, the user is still left with the problem of parking. At certain locations, especially those near a crowded downtown area, parking can be hard to find, and it can be especially hard to find parking on the premises of the location that the user wishes to travel to. The personal navigation device guides the user to the destination location, but the user ultimately has to find a suitable nearby parking area without the assistance of the personal navigation device. When the user is unfamiliar with the area surrounding the destination location, this can cause unnecessary stress for the user, and can even cause the user to run late due to the extra time that parking requires. In some instances, the user may not even be aware that parking will be difficult until the user arrives at the destination location, making it difficult for the user to determine when to start the trip to the destination location.